Le Vie D'Arthur
by QuirkDemon
Summary: Merlin has been waiting for hundreds of years for Arthur's reincarnation and when fate finally brings them together again, he doesn't hesitate in morphing their friendship into what it was before, and training Arthur for the destiny they are fated to repeat together. Loosely based on The Sword in the Stone. (other characters yet to be determined, non-slash-it's just not my thing)
1. Chapter 1

It was just a dare. _"Climb onto the old man's roof and get in through the attic window. Take anything cool-looking, or you're chicken." _

Well. Arthur wouldn't have that. Being called "wart" because of that _one time _he got one on his hand was bad enough—he wouldn't let people start saying he's a coward as well. 12-year-olds are like that. So, he climbed onto the roof of the old man's house and went through the open attic window feeling the eyes of his audience drill into the back of his head as if trying to determine whether or not he would change his mind.

He didn't.

The room he enters is a paradox of an attic—though clearly very old, everything shines as if it is brand new, yet they are covered in a thin layer of dust as though someone cares about them enough to clean them, but not enough to do so often. Arthur shakes his shaggy blond hair from his eyes and looks for something that is small but still cool enough to bring outside and present to his entranced audience. And then, a gleam in the corner of his eye catches his attention. Carefully, he works his way through the paradoxical maze until he reaches his destination and realizes what he'd seen was the lock of a very old chest. He knew he probably should have left it alone and moved on to something else, but simply _knowing_ this wasn't enough and so he knelt in front of the ancient chest, fully intending to reveal its secrets and steal them away in his sticky fingers but fate had other plans.

Just as Arthur was going to pull on the lock, the wooden floor beneath him gave way and he fell through with the paradoxical dust and landed with a solid _thump_ on something far softer than his body had braced itself for and when his heart finally settled and the dust went on its way, he realized he was in an arm chair in someone's living room. The old man's living room.

Oh.

Ready to make a run for it, Arthur sprang from the fortuitously placed chair and almost came into a hard impact with the person standing behind it.

"You're late." Was all the bearded old man said. Arthur gulped.

_Merlin._

_..._

**Second Merlin fanfiction.**_  
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**reviews are appreciated. **


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter 2**_

About 100 different thoughts went through Arthur's head at once. First was that he was in trouble. Second was, what kind of trouble was he in exactly?

He didn't know anything about this old man—he could have been a pedophile or a murderer.

Or a cannibal.

He had to get out, maybe get his friends' attention somehow. None of these thoughts, however, could have prepared him for what happened next.

"Would you like some tea?"

Arthur started, shocked.

"What?" was the only thing he could gasp past his dry throat.

"Tea," Merlin repeated. "Would you like a cup of tea?"

"Umm—"

"Excellent," without awaiting a reply, the old maybe-pedophile-maybe-murderer turned and went to the kitchen and without a moment of hesitation Arthur turned and ran to the window, pushing dusty curtains aside. Pressing his face to the cold glass, he hastily scanned the front yard for his friends, praying they hadn't heard the crash and ran away. Relief rushed through his chest to his feet, making him a little weak in the knees when he saw Leon, Gwen and Percy waiting on the sidewalk.

Desperately Arthur began waving his wands, trying to draw their attention to the prisoner-keeping window and if they saw him, they didn't give any indication before Arthur felt rather than heard a presence behind him. Sharply, he turned and saw Merlin coming back into the living room carrying a tray.

"Sit," he said. Hesitantly, Arthur sat on the edge of the chair he had fallen into only moments before and awaited his fate.

"There's no need to be nervous," the old man continued speaking. "If I was going to kill you, I'd have done it the moment you fell through my ceiling," he glanced upward to the gaping whole. "I guess I'll have to get that repaired,"

Arthur didn't relax. Everything was too strange to be relaxed.

"I assume you like tea?"

Arthur looked up at the old man.

"Yes..." he said skeptically.

"Help yourself," Merlin set the tray on the small table in front the chair—Arthur was surprised he hadn't noticed it before—and walked to a china cabinet standing against the opposite wall.

Arthur began preparing himself a cup of tea, thinking it best to humor the old man, and lifted the lid to the sugar bowl to find it empty.

"There's no sugar," he said closing the bowl.

"Isn't there?" Merlin replied without turning around. "Why don't you look again?"

Again humoring him, Arthur checked the sugar bowl and found it to be completely full. Confused, he looked to the old man and saw him grinning like a child in a candy store.

"How'd you do that?" he asked.

Instead of answering, Merlin began to walk from the living room. "I think it's time your friends joined us, don't you?"

At this point Arthur was seriously considering the possibilities that he was being pranked, or was simply going crazy and wasn't sure whether to laugh or scream as he listened to the strange old man open the door and invite his friends inside. Slowly, unsurely, Leon, Gwen and Percy trickled into the eerie fortress and stood uncomfortably in its keeper's living room.

"Would you like some tea?" Merlin asked, gesturing toward where Arthur sat in the arm chair.

"Actually, we should be going," he said jumping from to his feet. "It's getting late, after all and—"

"Nonsense, it's only 3 in the afternoon."

"Yeah, Arthur," Percy said, smirking at Arthur's shocked face. "We can stay a little while."

Annoyed, Arthur sat and he and his friends made their tea.

"After you," he said when he and Gwen reached for the sugar at the same time.

"What a gentleman," she joked. Then, seriously she whispered, "Do you think we're safe here? I mean, do you think Merlin's…harmless?"

Somehow Arthur thought old Merlin wasn't _at all_ helpless, but he didn't feel threatened by him—albeit discombobulated, perhaps a bit scared, but not like he was in danger. More like meeting a new teacher on the first day of school, and wanting to go back home.

As soon as everyone was comfortably seated with their tea, Merlin began talking and asking them questions about school and their social lives, and things of the sort. Gwen answered openly and honestly, if a little nervously, while Percy, Arthur and Leon answered with more distrust and hesitation. After a while, however, they relaxed some and spoke more willingly. Despite his strangeness, this old man was _trustworthy._

"Oh, look at the time," Merlin said looking at a clock hanging on the wall, beside the china cabinet. "You three should get home before it gets too dark."

Almost grudgingly, the kids agreed and Merlin showed them to the door.

"It was nice meeting you," Gwen said with a smile.

"And you, Milady," Merlin said giving a flourish of his hand and bowing to her. "I hope to see you all again soon."

Several good-byes rang out, and smiles linked as the friends took their leave.

"Wait," Arthur said, turning back to Merlin. "What did you mean when you said I was late? Late for what?"

"For tea, of course!" and then he slammed the door.


End file.
